Ex-Army Officer Admits Iraq Contract Award Scam

A former U.S. Army National Guard officer has admitted to federal charges that she accepted a bribe from a Kuwaiti company that won a $12 million Defense Department contract to build warehouses in Iraq.

Retired Lt. Col. Levonda J. Selph pleaded guilty to bribery and conspiracy charges, according to a Justice Department announcement.

Selph entered her plea before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton of the District of Columbia.

Prosecutors alleged in an October criminal information that Selph conspired with the owner of an unidentified Kuwaiti company to rig the award of a $12 million federal contract for the construction and operation of several warehouses in Iraq.

The conspiracy took place between April 2004 and December 2005 while Selph worked in Baghdad as a contracting officer's representative with responsibility over the warehouse contract, according to the charges.

Prosecutors said Selph agreed to accept a $5,000 vacation to Thailand and $4,000 in cash from the company owner in exchange for awarding him the contract.

As part of her plea, Selph agreed to pay $9,000 in restitution to the Defense Department and to serve a jail sentence to be determined a later date.

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